Episode 582: Pablo Sandoval's Special Skill, Your Special Emails
Date December 3, 2014 Summary Ben and Sam talk to Robert Arthur about what makes Pablo Sandoval uniquely valuable, then answer emails about eating contracts, baseball abroad, and more. Topics * Pablo Sandoval's ability to hit tough pitchers * Postseason pitching changes * Eating contracts to make trades * Valuing draft picks vs. prospects * Luckiest pitchers * Baseball expansion abroad * Choosing teams in your division Intro The Easybeats, "A Very Special Man" Banter * Matt Albers is rehabbing and plans to throw a bullpen for teams before spring training. * Episode 473 follow-up: Nick Markakis did not get an MVP vote. Email Questions * Jason (Miami, FL): "Given the current MLB climate where teams in major markets like the Red Sox have money to burn with only a finite number of options to spend it on, without giving away hordes of precious future value in prospects and teams like the A's are so constrained budgetarily despite being consistently in contention that they have to jettison players year after year, even when said players are still earning relatively modest salaries, why is it that you don't see attempts by teams such as Boston to lure teams like Oakland into dealing their next in line to go talent to them by not offering the usual package of prospects and up and comers but rather by assuming most if not all of the remaining money of current above average major leaguers that may not be essential to the current lineup? For example, while Sox player Shane Victorino at $13 million is almost certainly a losing money proposition in 2015, how much would Shane Victorino be worth to Oakland this year if his contract this year were free? I know it's well within the rules as teams eat money on players with bad contracts all the time, and Victorino might not be the ideal poster boy for my point but with the current market so valuing top tier young talent and big league players on club friendly deals, why is it that a team that can afford to eat $10 million not exploiting this advantage by simply creating great contracts out of average or bad ones by assuming the majority of the balance themselves?" * Vinit: "In Monday's episode Ben mentioned transactional losses that the A's have had over the years in all of their trades it's hard to measure them. However if you think of signing a free agent who has rejected a qualifying offer as a trade there is quantifiable loss since the incoming pick is worth considerably less than the outgoing one. Why are teams OK with that loss? Why wouldn't the teams losing the free agent be better off signing the player to an extension earlier, as early as required to circumvent sign and trade rules, and then trading him. Finally, are prospects valued more than draft picks because there is a name or face attached ie the George Carlin syndrome of my shit is stuff and your stuff is shit." * Paul: "While traveling through a Baseball Reference wormhole I came across Pat Mahome's 1994 season in which he pitched 120 innings with a 103 ERA+ and a 6.21 FIP. This seems like an insanely lucky season, I was wondering what starting pitcher has had the luckiest season or who had the largest gap in these two stats." * Simon (London, UK): "As there is increasing talk of having a London based NFL franchise what are your thoughts on the future potential of having a MLB team outside of the U.S. and Canada? Do you think it could be viable? Which current team would you pick to make such a move and what city would you select to move to if you were bankrolling this transition?" * John: "Pretend for a moment that you are allowed to choose four current MLB franchises to reside in the same division as your team for the next 30 years. You have the liberty to realign your favorite team's division however you may wish, with no changes for that time period. Which four teams would you want in your division and why? This is hugely important because winning the division gets you straight through to the LDS. I am an Indians fan and the four franchises I would feel best about being in a division with for the next 30 years would be, in no particular order, San Diego, Colorado, Minnesota, and Milwaukee. In my honorable mentions are Miami and Arizona. Is there a dark horse in this race that I am missing?" Play Index * Inspired by an email from listener Paul, Sam tries to find out the luckiest pitcher season. * Pat Mahome (1994) and Dwight Gooden (2000) were the only two pitchers with at least 50 IP in a season and a FIP that was 6% or more of ERA+. * In 2012 Dan Straily had a 101 ERA+ and 6.48 FIP in 39 1/3 innings. * In 2010 Robert Manuel had a 105 ERA+ and 9.08 FIP in 12 2/3 innings. Notes * Rob's did extensive research to find out how hitters can be expected to perform on tough pitchers. 90% of batters have worse results as pitches get tougher to hit. * Pablo Sandoval was one of a small number of hitters (also including Ike Davis and Elvis Andrus) who has the same success regardless of the type of pitcher he is facing. * In Episode 579 Ben and Sam tried to understand the contract gap between Pablo Sandoval and Chase Headley. Rob's research may provide some insight. * Sam accidentally says "non-revelatory" with the emphasis on the second syllable. He describes his position on Kris Medlen as "considering all my options but haven't decided to make a move." * Sam considered "trading a player while still paying him" in Trading Giancarlo Stanton, which he confesses was a low point in his career. He believes it doesn't enter the picture because the situation rarely occurs. * After Ben reads Vinit's question, Sam says "explicit tag" and notes that this is the first time Ben has used a swear word on the podcast. Ben isn't uncomfortable with swearing, but it's just not something he does. * Sam, on Vinit's emails, "Vinit, good emailer. Not enough talk about Vinit." * Ben and Sam agree that Mexico City makes the most sense for expansion outside of the U.S. or Canada. In Episode 1144 Ben and Jeff discuss baseball in Mexico City with volcanologist Erik Klemetti. Links * Effectively Wild Episode 582: Pablo Sandoval's Special Skill, Your Special Emails * Sandoval's unique talent by Robert Arthur * Trading Giancarlo Stanton by Sam Miller Category:Email Episodes Category:Episodes Category:Non-Revelatory Rumors